Biodiversity conservation is a priority for the Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda and has as its objective the strict management and conservation of sites of special interest due to its biological value. They are land tracts that have been given in a voluntary way by its owners to dedicate them to the biodiversity conservation.

the direct acquisition of land tracts in order to ensure its protection against threats like woodcutting and cattle. To this end, a NGO associated to Grupo Ecológico was created, we refer to Joya del Hielo, A.C., organization that, with the donations of its associates and funding by other parties like World Park’s Endowment and the People’s Trust for Endangered Species has managed the protection of several land tracts (453 hectares).

In these terms, portions of the following ecosystems are being protected:Cloud forest.
Oak forest
Pine-oak forest
Tropical deciduous forest.

These sanctuaries harbor some of the threatened endemic species like:

• magnolias (Magnolia dealbata y M. schiedeana)
• yew (Taxus globosa)
• cycads (Dioon edule, Ceratozamia sp.)
• several orchid species

Endangered fauna:

• Bearded woodpartridge (Dendrortyx barbatus)
• Great curassow (Crax rubra)
• Crested guan (Penelope purpurascens)
• Brocket deer (Mazama americana)
• White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)
• Puma (Felis concolor)
• Pourcupine (Coendu mexicanus)
• Javalina (Tayassu tajacu)

Forestry Commission (CONAFOR) a proposal to apply the Hydrological Services Payment Program in the Reserve and its influence area, the Xilitla municipality in San Luis Potosi’s state. This program strives to stimulate the land owners of the forests located in the country’s priority watershed zones to continue to preserve and protected their lands in order to keep them carrying on the water caption and infiltration actions, bearing in mind the alarming rate of forest destruction and the diminishing watersheds.

From June through September 2003, GESG personnel and of the Reserve’s Directive Board carried on the promotion and consensus of the program, meeting with owners, ejido assemblies, supervising and geo-locating the land tracts, documentation gathering, digitalized map elaboration and solicitor’s files integration. As a result, the CONAFOR selected around 4,600 hectares inside the Reserve and 9,800 hectares inside the Xilitla municipality in the highlands of the Silleta sierra. This means that in exchange of preserving the forests and the environmental services these offer, the owners receive a yearly payment, for a period of 5 years.

At the same time, since 2005 and with duration of 3 years, the First Conservation Payment in the SGBR was implemented with GEF resources, destined to land leasing to guarantee the land’s conservation where the owners agree to conserve the natural resources, making no changes to the land use, no lumber extraction, realising no hunting activities and avoiding wildfires. For this they receive an economic retribution. The implementation of this program required a great in field work, which was carried on by Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda, I.A.P. and Bosque Sustentable, A.C. personnel, and included the presentation of the program and consensus with the owners in order to carry on the valuation of the conservation status of the land tract, check limits and geo-position them and integrate all the data in the information system of the reserve. Thus, 2,440 hectares belonging to 26 owners was integrated into this conservation scheme.

We consider that this has been a particularly successful and innovative program since it has managed the salvage and complete protection of authentic natural sanctuaries. Also it has managed to involve corporations like Cummins de Mexico, through the Cummins Philanthropic Association, A.C. and the Bimbo Group through the Reforestamos Mexico Foundation, A.C. that have joined this initiative protecting by themselves other sanctuaries. Until today, there are 1,800 hectares dedicated to conservation thanks to this program.